Protests

On Saturday, as I was walking toward GM place to go and see the Cold Play concert, we passed the Vancouver Library where a protest was being held. The protests was about the election in Iran that happened on June 12th. All over the world Iranian communities are protesting to create awareness about the current situation in Iran.

The election in Iran created controversy when Mahmoud Ahmadinejad got elected, winning majority over the more popular challenger Mir Hossein Mousavi. The shock, disbelief and protest on the streets of Tehran were immediate. Iranians could not believe the result and protested to have a re vote due to the count being flawed. Now, the citizens just do not want a re vote they want a revolution

There is evidence that suggests that this election was flawed.
1) Mobile Polling Station. The ballot boxes were transported from place to place by agents of the interior ministry which were a close ally of Mr. Ahmainejad. Other events suggest that this happened through out the day which gave suspicion that something was not right. The SMS network was shut down and the interior ministry started kicking out employees, with only close and top official left.
2) Quick Results. Records were broken in Iran for the turnout of the election on June 12th. It is thought that the results were published remarkably quickly, only 4 hours after the polls had closed.
3) Number of Voters. In provinces in Khoresan and Mazaandaran, the number of people who voted exceeded the number of eligible voters in those particular provinces.

Protesting is an interesting topic as it “expresses relatively overt reaction to events or situations.” The organization of protests is “a way of publicly and forcefully making their opinions heard in an attempt to influence public opinion or government policy, or may undertake undertake to attempt to directly enact desired changes themselves”

There are many different types of protests that ones can experience, be involved in or be a spectator of. Types of protests include, marches, picketing, lock downs, radical cheerleading, petitions, formation of a tent city, riots, lockout are just a few examples. You have a protest that can be misconducted and create violence or harm, or you can have those that are simply creating awareness for the world to understand what is going on.

Unfortunately, the protest in Iran did start peacefully but as the results of the election started to spread throughout the country, the protesters started to become violent. Crowds broke into shops, vandalized signs and windows, set fir to tires and formed a human chain of 300 people to close off a major Tehran Street. This is apparently the "biggest unrest since the 1979 revolution in Iran."

In BC, the protests are tame but growing. On the first night of protest at the Vancouver Art Gallery there were approximately 500 protesters standing there silently with signs and candles, last night it has grown to over 1000. It is not just the young Iranians that are out there protesting but all generations are taking a stand to support their family and friends in Iran currently.

Even though this crisis is far from us, it become more real when the protest in our own city make a difference and allow us to become even more aware of the situation.